Games People Play
by PermanantGuest
Summary: My first fanfic! This can be read as Remy talking to himself, or as an outside observer giving Remy the business. That said: Remy is left to reflect on some of the choices that he's made, post-finale. Not what you're thinking!


Well, you've finally gone and done it, haven't you! The one girl you actually felt something for, the one girl who actually meant something to you, and you blew it. Why? Because you just couldn't change your ways. Oh sure, you cleaned up your act, joined the others at the mansion. You even managed to handle all that business with the Guilds down in New Orleans. But once an incorrigible swamp rat, always an incorrigible swamp rat, right?

Things started off well enough. After that mess in Egypt, everybody sort of realized that there are things out there that are bigger than all of us, and you all ended up reconciling your differences, everyone moving into the mansion together. Just an added bonus that _she_ was there. Those first few months were bliss. Remember that amazing group photo? You with your arm around _her_, a giant grin on your face and a sweet, sincere one on _hers_? You brought something special out in _her_. Made _her_ forget that ridiculous crush of _hers_, who was busy fawning over a redhead who was never truly quite sure what she wanted. You two were happy together. Things were looking pretty damn good. But old habits die hard, and it wasn't long before you were up to your old tricks.

It just had to be the roommate first, didn't it. The sweet, innocent Kitten with the valley girl accent. Even though she was nursing her own little crush on one of those Brotherhood boys, you cornered her quickly and whispered sweet, buttery nothings into her ear until she was hanging on your every word. "Puppy" would have been a more apt nickname for her after that, the way you had her following you around. _She_ didn't think to much of it at the time. Simply thought you were having some fun, trying to get some laughs.

Next was the Firecracker. A little young, but man did the nickname fit! The little yellow spitfire was constantly on the lookout for any kind of male attention, and who could blame her. In a house full of so many lovely ladies, the young Asian girl was desperate to drag the boys' attention away from the older, more developed lady. She was putty in your hands with nothing more than a glance. _She_ thought it was sweet that you were paying attention to the girl who tried too hard.

The Feral girl was a bit hard to crack. She really took after the man she was cloned from (in attitude only, thank God!), a loner through and through; always looking for a challenge, always looking to prove herself, to better herself. Your fighting skills won you this conquest. Taking her down in Danger Room sessions, challenging her to sparring matches during free time out in the yard. Stealing that almost kiss after you had pinned her after a particularly vigorous match, and the loner girl wasn't so lonely anymore. It was after that that _she_ started growing concerned over your wandering eyes and too friendly ways.

You really pressed your luck with the Weather Witch. It never went anywhere, obviously. She was much too mature and much too clever to fall for your little games. Still, the chase (and it's _always_ about the chase) was fun. It stung a bit as she reprimanded you, asking about a certain sweet young southern girl waiting for you. Lucky for you, said southern belle never found out about that one.

And did you really think _she_ was sitting idly by, while you ran about the mansion, flirting with every pretty little thing that walked by? As the days went by, you got so caught up playing your little games, pushing for the next conquest, that you never noticed the proverbial little black cloud forming over your sweet _chere's_ head. You never noticed _her_ slowly drifting away from you, and everybody else. Back into that shell that _she_ had created so long ago. Someone else noticed, though. The old crush, the Fearless Leader, who had never abandoned _her_ as a friend; who was always there with an easy smile and an open ear. You had to smirk when he placated _her_ and told _her_ not to worry. But, oh how it burned when _she_ gave him that sweet, sincere smile that you always thought was just for you.

Seducing the Redhead was too sweet for you. As a connoisseur of matters of the heart, you could tell what she and the Boy Scout had wasn't real, and it pleased you to no end to whisk her away from him. Not that that's what you did, mind. You simply planted some seeds and watched them grow through the cracks in their relationship. You couldn't help but smile as you watched the very dramatic and very public break up of the mansion's Perfect Couple. But that smile didn't last very long once you realized _she_ saw you.

Your own fight was much more private. And much more intense. You couldn't say anything as _she_ confronted you with every lie and every affair, even if you never actually did sleep with any of those other girls. You didn't just give up though. Not with _her_. You tried every tactic you could to try and win _her_ back. You even (truthfully) professed your love to _her_, told _her_ you loved _her_; something you had never told another human being in you life. Your own heart shredded as _she_ ripped up the Queen of Hearts card that you had given _her_ and walked out of your room.

And where did _she_ end up? In the arms of the man whose heart you helped destroy. Bittersweet that the two hearts you broke were able to heal together. Because even through his shielded gaze, when they look at each other, the raw emotion that pours off of them and emanates around the room, filling those lucky enough to be close to them with a sense that all is right with the world, you finally see the truth. _She_ never looked at you like that. _She_ was just another victim of your charms. The feelings you had for _her_, that you confessed to _her_. _She_ never returned them. In the end, you fooled yourself, falling victim to your own game. And funny how you thought you knew what love really was.


End file.
